By Cheryl Lock

In 2007, a woman named Meredith Whitney issued a report that ended up predicting the future of U.S. markets for years to come.

As someone who worked in equity research, it was Whitney’s job to closely study the financial industry in order to inform clients of the latest trends. “You’d be surprised how many people on Wall Street don’t know how to read company financial reports or interpret the underlying data,” Whitney writes in her new book, “Fate of the States: The New Geography of American Prosperity .” “But delving into the numbers was always my favorite part of the job.”

In fact, it was Whitney’s careful analysis of some disconcerting numbers that forced her to release the now legendary report about Citigroup Citigroup on Oct. 31, 2007.

“The report raised concerns about mortgage losses at Citigroup, and warned that the megabank might be forced to cut its dividend,” Whitney details in her book. (In other words, the bank would pay less than usual to its shareholders.) “When the stock market reopened the next morning, Citigroup’s stock plummeted, losing $17 billion in market value in one day. And the S&P 500 dropped $374 billion.”

Impressed with her foresight, we decided to take a look at Whitney’s new book to see what other astute predictions she has made for the economic future of our country, including where the best jobs will be (hint: it’s not where you’d expect) and which industries will be raking in the most cash.

Prediction #1: Jobs Are Headed Back To The U.S.

If Whitney is to be believed, American production will be making a comeback—in a major way. “Growth in America is going to come from making things—and not Big Macs or e-cards but important stuff, like fuel and chemicals and cars,” she writes.

In fact, the United States is already close to producing more oil than Saudi Arabia. “Domestic oil and gas production is increasing for the first time in over 20 years,” Whitney notes. “And we now boast the lowest natural gas prices in the world, which is a giant magnet to global manufacturers.”

Why It’s Happening

It’s no longer all that much cheaper to produce goods abroad, which is why it’s starting to make more sense, economically, to do it stateside. “The ‘all in all’ cost differential between producing goods in China and the United States has narrowed dramatically,” Whitney writes.

And when you factor in the exorbitant costs associated with shipping large, finished goods from other nations—as well as our country’s relative political and social stability—you’ll see that America is well positioned to be a big player in the field of production. It’s already evident that manufacturing is making a comeback—some 500,000 new jobs have been added since 2010.

How It Will Affect You

An increase in the demand for American products—both here and abroad—can only mean good things for the job market. As it stands, “many towns and cities throughout the central corridor don’t have enough workers to fill all the available jobs,” Whitney notes.